DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN HARRY POTTER OR POKÉMON

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|PALLET TOWN|

"Fire Blast!"

My eyes were glued to my laptop's screen as I watched Ash Ketchum take on Leon, the Galar Champion, in the finals of the World Coronation Series.

"Come on, Pikachu, finish it with Thunderbolt!"

Even though I'd seen this battle a dozen times, I leaned forward in anticipation. Pikachu knocked out Leon's Charizard in a spectacular finish, and I couldn't help but get swept up in the moment.

The camera panned across thousands of screaming fans, the crowd erupting into cheers, and I couldn't contain my excitement.

"Yes!" I pumped my fist, a wide grin spreading across my face.

Ash Ketchum had just won it all!

Of course, I knew he would, I'd been following him on his journey since Day 1…but this wasn't just a battle in an anime anymore—this was history unfolding right before my eyes. Part of me still couldn't believe any of this was real.

Just a month ago, I'd made the choice to board the train at King's Cross and willingly step into the arms of Death. I had always assumed the title "Master of Death" was just a metaphor, but I'd only been on the train long enough to see my life flash by before Death had tossed my soul of my reality and into a recently deceased body. Because apparently, being the Master of the Deathly Hallows, and thus the Master of Death, my soul couldn't truly die.

A servant could not harm the Master.

Or at least that's what Death said.

I didn't know what to expect, but never in a million years would I have guessed I was going to wake up in a hospital in Pallet Town, straight out of the games and anime I'd loved.

Beside me, I felt the warm, feminine body that my other arm was curled around shift slightly as a dissatisfied moan escaped her lips. I winced and lowered the volume on my laptop, only for my phone to start buzzing. I grabbed it from where it sat on my nightstand, quickly shutting off my alarm.

"Sam...it's way too early..." the body grumbled, snuggling deeper into the covers.

"Sorry," I whispered back, slipping my arm out from under her. She rolled away from me, pulling the covers along with her until she was wrapped in a bunched-up mass of sheets.

I swung my legs over the edge of my twin bed and stood up, pulling on a pair of pants and a T-shirt before stepping out of the room. After closing my bedroom door softly, I walked down the hallway. It was eerily quiet in the house, except for the faint rustling coming from the kitchen where the lights were on.

In the kitchen, Daisy Oak was standing at the sink, her lab coat swapped for an apron as she washed dishes.

I rapped my knuckles against the door frame to let her know I was there and not startle her.

"Arceus!" Daisy gasped, spinning to face me, her hand clutching her chest. "Don't sneak up on your mother like that, Sammy! You nearly gave me a heart attack!"

I did my best to hide my discomfort at hearing the words 'your mother'. It was true she had given birth to the body I was in, but she wasn't 'my' mother…because I was not Samuel Oak III.

Samuel Oak III was a boy who grew up in the world of Pokémon, raised in Pallet Town by his parents, Daisy Oak and Ash Ketchum. Or as I personally knew them from my own experiences, the main character of the Pokémon Anime and Gary Oak's sister from the Pokémon Adventures Manga.

When I first realized where I was and who my new parents were, I gave Ash a mental thumbs up. He was proud of his boy for getting together with Gary's sister. The two had moved past their rivalry in the later seasons of the anime, but Gary was still a jerk at the beginning. Turning over a new leaf didn't magically erase who Gary had been for years prior. And there was no better way to get back at someone than getting involved with a relative.

Though, Gary did have the retort of Professor Oak, Sam's namesake, retiring to Alola...with Delia.

So, the banging of relatives kind of canceled out.

"Wasn't sneaking," I said. "Just, y'know...walking quietly."

Daisy gave me a sharp look. "Uh-huh. And does this walking quietly have anything to do with a certain house guest I found in your bed recently?"

I groaned at the reminder of when Daisy had walked in on me and Joy. I felt a little guilty about subjecting her to seeing that. A month ago she would have never had to worry about her son having a girl over.

"Are you ever going to stop bringing that up?" I asked.

Yes, forgetting to lock the door had been a mistake on my part, but who could blame me? Joy had practically been throwing herself at me!

In the Pokémon World, Samuel Oak III wasn't just part of the Oak family; he was the son of the World Champion, which made me practically royalty after waking up in Samuel's body.

Something that my "Uncle Gary" had told me when he saw Joy flirting with me. Apparently she'd been after "Sam" for weeks before his accident, and after I woke up in the hospital, he sat me down and gave me a long talk about what being an Oak and the son of the world champion meant for me when it came to women. Finding someone who loved me and not my celebrity status or bank account would be hard and I'd probably be burnt a few times before I found the one. But at the same time, if I wasn't ready to settle down, that celebrity status and money would have girls throwing themselves at me.

I'd been embarrassed when the conversation started, but the more Gary talked, the more I realized how oblivious I'd been for the past seven years. Growing up with the Dursleys had left me ill-prepared to deal with the opposite sex. I had grown up to be extremely introverted, and I didn't have the social awareness during my years at Hogwarts to understand just how famous I was. That the moment I stepped into the castle my first year, I could have had 7th-year witches in a broom closet!

And there was no one to teach me!

None of the teachers at Hogwarts were going to tell me that my unruly black hair was attractive and that I shouldn't be ashamed of the scar Voldemort left. That seeing the lightning bolt, proof I had "defeated" the most powerful Dark Lord as a toddler, made girls' knickers wet.

Sirius was the only one who would have told me, but he had left my life too early before he could.

That left me stumbling my way through school, inexcusably thick to how many witches would have dropped their knickers for me in the Great Hall, in front of Dumbledore himself, just to say they shagged the Boy-Who-Lived.

The realization had flipped my worldview upside down. It was hard for me to believe that me: the skinny, glasses-wearing Harry Potter was that popular.

It got me thinking about the conversations, and the opportunities I had missed at Hogwarts. The opportunities I couldn't take now; because I was married!

The demure smiles from Parvati Patil at the Yule Ball. Her sister Padma too! I could have had them both that night!

Romilda Vane had even tried to drug me!

I wished the girl would have just told me she liked me. Maybe if she did, the light would have clicked on in my brain, and I would have seen all the other signs. So many opportunities had passed by and I hadn't even known. At King's Cross, I had boarded the train without any regrets, but after my talk with Gary, I could admit that not using my status as the famous Boy-Who-Lived to my advantage was a big one. Something I planned to change in this new life of mine. There were a lot of beautiful women in the world of Pokémon, and all I needed to do was be the best damn Pokémon trainer in the world and celebrity status would open a lot of doors for me!

Of course, Pallet Town wasn't very big, and was mostly filled with married couples, so the dating pool for my age would have been quite small. Or, it would have been if this world followed the same laws as the real world. But it didn't, which meant Joy, the daughter of Viridian City's Nurse Joy who was interning at Professor Oak's lab while on break from college, didn't have a problem sleeping with me, legally or morally.

"If it's embarrassing for you to talk about, then maybe you shouldn't be doing it?" Daisy waved aside my objection.

I crossed my arms, meeting her stare flatly. "I'm an adult. I have no problem talking about sex. Just not with you." I retorted, and wow, was it wild to say that at 15, but that's the world I was living in now.

Although, I guess I could have technically been an adult at this age in the Wizarding World too. Underage students weren't allowed to participate in the Triwizard Tournament, so technically that meant that I had been recognized as a legal adult in the eyes of the Ministry of Magic. But that was a reach and I doubted it would hold up in court.

In this world, the law was much more straightforward. Basically, as soon as a person graduated Year 9 in the muggle school system, they are considered a legal adult, able to apply for a Pokémon License, and permitted to carry Poké Balls to capture Pokémon.

Of course, there was more to being a legal adult than just the right to own Pokémon. All adult rights were granted after graduating junior high school in this world. Under-18s weren't considered minors, not even 14 or 15-year-olds. For example, if you were to steal something from a convenience store, the consequences would be more than just the shopkeeper getting mad at you, the police would arrest you. And no matter how much your parents try to apologize, you are still culpable as an adult.

The most important point of this law was that after finishing Year 9, people could make their own life choices. They could stay in school for a higher education or take over the family business. No matter what you decided to do, you were considered an adult in all respects, from traffic violations to paying taxes and even getting married.

"Why not?" Daisy asked, pulling me back into the conversation.

Because despite not being Sam, I had his memories of her being being his mother, and there were some things I never wanted to talk to Daisy about if I could help it. But after she'd accidentally walked in on me with Joy's toes pointed at the ceiling, Daisy seemed intent on bringing it up whenever she could and making it clear that despite the law being in our favor, she didn't like the eight-year age gap between us.

Daisy flicked water at me. "Being an adult and being mature isn't always the same thing, Sammy," she said, and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.

It seemed no matter what world you lived in, there was going to be a double standard when it came to age. In the wizarding world, it was totally fine for me to risk my life in the Triwizard Tournament…but Madam Rosmerta would have never served me a Firewhisky.

And in the world of Pokémon, it was even more outrageous! "Adults" were mature enough to be trusted to travel around the world—alone!—when even the weakest species of Pokémon could easily kill a human and the strongest could level entire cities.

But Daisy had a problem with me dating Joy—yeah, that made sense—not!

I glanced at the clock on the wall. I still had time, but I wanted to get away from this conversation sooner rather than later. "I'm going to head over to Professor Oak's...I'll come back before leaving Pallet," I said.

Arceus, it was weird talking to her. I'd only taken two steps when Daisy's soapy hand closed around my wrist.

"Sammy, wait," she said, her tone serious now.

I paused, bracing for whatever embarrassing, entirely too personal remarks were coming next. Some maternal objection or plea to make better dating choices.

"I wanted to ask if you're still set on becoming a Pokémon Trainer."

I blew out a long breath, my shoulders sagging. Of course, that's what this was about. Lately, I felt like I couldn't make a move without someone questioning my goals or trying to steer me back towards becoming a Pokémon Researcher.

"Yeah, I am," I said finally, unable to keep a defensive note from entering my voice. "I know everyone expected me to become a Pokémon researcher like you and Uncle Gary, but nothing's changed. I'm going to be a Trainer, like Dad."

Like most conversations about my future lately, an undercurrent of tension filled the room as soon as the words left my mouth. I watched emotions flicker across Daisy's face, there and gone before I could interpret them. Though she hid it well, I knew Daisy still harbored anxieties over the path I had chosen.

Finally, she nodded, a strained smile on her face that didn't reach her eyes. "Of course, Sammy. I just worry, you know? It won't be easy."

I crossed the kitchen in two long strides and pulled Daisy into a hug. I really did feel bad for her. She'd lost her son and didn't even know it, so I could understand her concern. To her, this was all a sudden change, as if her son had woken up one day and decided to change his entire career path just a few months before finishing high school.

But for me?

Becoming a Pokémon Trainer wasn't even a question for me. I was in the world of Pokémon! I wasn't going to college to get a degree! I was going to be the best Pokémon Trainer in the world!

"Don't worry," I said to Daisy. "I know what I'm doing."

I hoped if I sounded confident enough, Daisy would start believing me, because what I said was the truth. There wasn't a person in the world who had a better chance than me of becoming a Pokémon Champion.

When I pulled back from the hug, the lines on Daisy's forehead had smoothed out some, and she regarded me now with a gentle, if anxious, affection. She reached out to ruffle my already messy hair.

"Alright, I trust you," she said softly. "Now, hurry up and get down to the lab." Her mouth curved into a smile. "Arceus knows your Uncle Gary would never let me hear the end of it if you were late today."

I huffed a small laugh as I headed for the front door. "I'll see you when I get back!"

There wasn't a chance in hell I'd be late today.

As I stepped out into the sunshine, I felt a nervous but excited energy thrumming through my veins. The same feeling I had when Hagrid first took me to Diagon Alley.

This was really happening!

I'm about to get a real life starter Pokémon! I thought as I set off down the street towards Professor Oak's Pokémon Research Lab at the edge of town.

The story was going to start with Harry being reborn as a baby in the world of Pokemon, but I want to show his excitement of being a fan and seeing Pokémon through the story. So I decided that his soul just got dropped in a recently dead body because he can't die.

Don't worry, Harry is still going to have his magic!

Also, I raised the age requirement to become a Pokémon trainer (kind of a must for a story that will eventually be M-Rated).

Thanks for reading!